Money Saving Mondays

I thought it would be a fun idea to do a weekly series with a few tips on saving money. As the title implies, it will be a recurring post on Mondays. I hope to write about things that are going on in that week, like a good sale at a store or a good coupon that is good for that week as well as some more advice.

For the first installment of my weekly posts, I wanted to give everyone a starting point. The very first thing that you need to do in order to start couponing or receiving discounts is to be a rewards member at that store. Many discounts are only offered to rewards members, and not just the general public, so you get exclusive discounts.

Nearly every single store has a rewards member system. When I first started doing this, I was using my mom's account for everything. I do not recommend using another person's account because then they receive the "points" or "rewards" from what you spend. The best thing to do is create a new account and start receiving your own points.

It is always free to sign up to be a rewards member at a store, so you have nothing to lose. You can start out small and sign up only at stores that you shop at often. The places that I would recommend that you start at are Speedway, Kroger, and Martins.

Speedway is a gas station, but they also sell many things inside as well. You have to put gas in your car, but by using the rewards member card each time you get gas, you receive points as well. After a certain number of points, you can get free food and drinks and even discounts on gas. I enjoy this rewards membership, because you have to put gas in your car, so you may as well get some good deals out of it.

Kroger and Martins also have rewards member cards. Many times, these grocery stores offer deals that can only be redeemed by using a rewards member card.

I just went to the Kroger on October 6th, and I got a deal using my Kroger card. Normally, name brand two liters of pop, like Mountain Dew and Pepsi, are $1.67 each. Using my Kroger card, I got these two liters for 88 cents each. I was going to buy the pop anyway, but I got it half off.

So, my advice to you this week is the next time you go to a store, ask if they have a rewards system and sign up for it! You can get exclusive deals and discounts for things that you already buy anyway!

If you like my content, check out Squawkfox. She posts blogs about cooking and lifestyle items as well as saving money and budgeting.

Comment down below and let me know if you already have a rewards card and what kinds of really good deals you got with it! Personally, I was really happy to get name brand pop for half off at Kroger with my card. 

Image Credit: I Heart Planners

Budget Yourself

Image Credit: Traffic Sign

STOP spending unnecessary amounts of money! STOP buying food and drinks from the vending machine! STOP buying coffee from Starbucks or the gas station before class! 

The first step in saving money is to START planning your spending. 

I feel like I used to be the worst at doing this. If I was thirsty, I would get a drink from the vending machine. If I was tired before class, I would stop and get a five dollar coffee. If I wanted a snack, I would stop at a convenience store. Let me know in the comments if you do this as well so I do not feel alone! 

I felt like I was spending so much money on food and drinks, but I never had anything at home. The solution to my problem was just taking the time to plan my spending and budget my money. 

It is a lot cheaper to buy coffee and drinks from the grocery store and bring them to class than it is to stop at Starbucks or the gas station each day. In the long run, it will save you so much money. 

The key is to create a budget. Creating a budget may sound boring or difficult, but it is not as hard as it seems. Having a budget can help you feel like you have yourself together and can be an adult.

The first thing you need to do is list out all of the income that you make in a month. If you have multiple jobs, you need to list out how much money you are bringing home each month. The next thing is to list all expenses that you have that are mandatory. These include things you must pay for like rent, utilities, a car payment, an insurance payment, a loan payment, or anything else that you have to use your money to pay for each month.

Listing income and expenses is the start of creating a budget, but it can go a long way to see where and how you are spending your money. It will help you plan what you spend so you do not find yourself spending money for unnecessary things. 

Let me know in the comments, or email me, if creating a budget has helped you save money. 

About This Blog

Welcome to my blog!

My name is Myra Edwards and I am currently in my third year of college. I am majoring in biology and minoring in criminal justice. I am now considered an upperclassman, even though it feels like just yesterday I was still a freshman.

All of my classes now are upper level and require much more time to work on and study for than I am used to. This means that, honestly, I do not have to time to work a full 40 hours each week while going to school at the same time.

I feel like no matter what major you choose, you may be in the same predicament that I am in. Taking a full course load and working a job at the same time is not easy. Sometimes I come home from work exhausted and do not feel like doing homework or studying. Sometimes I have to go straight from class to work or vice versa. Not everyone has the luxury of being able to go to college and not work.

Right now I live in my own apartment, with my boyfriend, and we are both taking college courses. He is working full time and taking online classes part time. Oppositely, I am going to college full time, taking a mix of online and on campus courses, and working part time.

Currently, I am juggling 15 credit hours, including a biology lab that is 4 hours long, and working about 25 hours a week at my job. I am very lucky and thankful that my job and my manager know of my school situation and are willing and able to give me hours around my class schedule. One of the biggest struggles is that my class schedule changes every semester, and my work schedule must change with it. 

I made this blog to help other college students in my situation.

Rent and bills are not cheap, and although my parents are emotionally supportive of my choice to go to college, unfortunately they are not able to financially support me whatsoever. It is understandable that my parents have their own bills to pay, but this means that I am paying for my whole college bill by myself.

I am hoping to help other college students who live on their own and pay for school on their own. Hopefully I can show you some easy ways to save money while being a student. I am also hoping to help students balance the budget that they are dealing with and save enough for rent, bills, food, and other items. 

I would love if readers would comment or email me their ideas on how they have saved money on a budget or while being a student. I would also love to have feedback on how my ideas have helped others or how they put their own spin on an idea I gave them!